Safflower Carthamus tinctorius

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SafflowerCarthamus tinctorius

• History
• Believed to be one of the oldest cultivated crops
• Records of production dating back to ancient
  Egypt and Greece 1500 BC
• Historically grown as a dye and for food
• India, US, and Mexico are now leading producers

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SafflowerCarthamus tinctoriusIdentification

• Thistle like plant
• Strongly branched
• Generally between 15-30 tall
• Tap root up to 10 long

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SafflowerCarthamus tinctoriusIdentification

• Leaves
• Ovate
• Multiple long spines

• Flowers
• Globular
• 1-5 per branch
• Bright yellow to red

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SafflowerCarthamus tinctoriusProperties

• Originally dyes were made from flowers
• Seeds contain 30-35 oil
• Test weigh of 38-44lbs/ acre
• Seeds encased in a hull

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SafflowerCarthamus tinctoriusUses

• Oil
• Linoleic
• More than 75 polyunsaturated fat
• Edible oil
• Margarines
• Biodiesel
• Paint
• Oleic
• High in
• monounsaturated fat
• Health Market
• Heat stable
• Meal
• Livestock feed
• 24 CP
• High Fiber

• Bird seed
• Less palatable to squirrels than sunflower
• Foots
• Byproduct of oil pressing
• Soap
• Specialty markets for petals
• Dyes
• Paper

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SafflowerCarthamus tinctoriusProduction

• Long season plant (110-140 days)
• Relatively drought resistant
• Can tolerate down to 20 in rosette stage
• Form buds in late June
• Flower in mid to late July

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SafflowerCarthamus tinctoriusProduction seed
preparation

• Generally responds to N and P fertilization
• Seeded in April or early May
• Seeded 15-30 lbs/acre
• Seeded 1-1½ deep

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SafflowerCarthamus tinctoriusProduction risk
management

• Poor competitor with weeds
• Several herbicides approved
• Disease susceptible in wet years
• Alternaria leaf spot
• Pseudomonus bacterial blight
• Has shown little economic loss to insects

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SafflowerCarthamus tinctoriusProduction harvest

• Harvested about 4 weeks after flowering
• Direct combined
• Using small grain combines
• Harvested at seed moisture
• below 8
• Regional test plots
• averaged 1600lbs/acre